Three Moons as You
by xFallingStarsx
Summary: "When light and dark clash, they see only despair and betrayal. For three moons both will know what it is to be the other, for balance can be restored only when each sees the truth." The lives of two young apprentices are about to change forever.
1. Chapter 1: The Prophecy

**Hello everyone! This is my second story for Warriors XD. I know it is probably similar to some other body-switch stories I have read, but I was really inspired by the idea so I decided to make my own. So please read on and enjoy the story! x**

**Disclaimer: All characters in this story belong to Erin Hunter - I am merely experimenting with them XD.**

* * *

_**Three Moons As You**_

_**Chapter One ~ The Prophecy**_

Angry voices could be heard in the clearing outside the medicine cats' den as Jaypaw sorted herbs for his mentor, Leafpool, and he instantly recognised who they belonged to.

"I'm not doing anything wrong! Why can't you just leave me alone?"

"Because I know what you're up to and if you don't stop I'm going to tell Firestar!"

"Is that a threat?"

It was Lionpaw and Hollypaw. Jaypaw sighed. His brother and sister were constantly at each others' throats these days, and it seemed like he was the only one who didn't understand why. Neither of them would talk to him much, and whenever he asked what the problem was they would become mysteriously deaf until the subject was changed, or make up ridiculous excuses to get away. Jaypaw was sick and tired of it.

"Yes, it is," warned Hollypaw's voice.

"Fine then! Go and run to Firestar, if that's what you really want!"

Jaypaw looked up at the entrance to the den just in time to see Lionpaw stalk past, his amber eyes blazing with anger. Abandoning his herbs, Jaypaw stuck his head out of the entrance and spotted Hollypaw, glaring after Lionpaw with her black pelt bristling.

Deciding it would be unwise to question his sister while she was in this mood, the grey tabby apprentice returned to his pile of herbs, a sinking feeling in his stomach. Would Lionpaw and Hollypaw ever make up?

*

Some time later, Leafpool trotted into the medicine den, a bundle of leaves in her mouth. She deposited them beside the herbs Jaypaw had been carefully sorting and purred.

"Good job, Jaypaw," she praised her apprentice, sniffing the pile to check that all the herbs were there. When she was satisfied, she straightened up and looked down at Jaypaw, who had been feeling miserable ever since Lionpaw's and Hollypaw's row earlier that day. Leafpool seemed to realise this, for she asked with concern, "What's the matter?"

Jaypaw didn't feel like answering. He turned his back on the medicine cat and started placing the herbs in their right order against the back wall of the den. As he worked, he could feel Leafpool's gaze boring into him. Eventually, the she-cat broke the silence that had fallen between them.

"Jaypaw, you don't have to keep everything bottled up, you know."

The apprentice spun round, anger making his fur start to bristle. "I'll do what I like, thank you," he growled coldly.

Leafpool sighed. "Well, you know where I am – just in case." With that, she turned around and made her way out of the den, leaving Jaypaw alone with his thoughts.

*

That night, Jaypaw had a very strange dream. He had fallen asleep thinking about his littermates' fury towards one another, and the way they seemed to be excluding Jaypaw from whatever was happening. Now the apprentice was in a deep slumber, twitching every now and then as he dreamed.

He was standing in a lush, sunlit forest; one he knew very well. The scents and sounds of prey reached him through the warm air, but then, suddenly, he caught a new smell. Jaypaw whirled around and came face to face with a familiar tortoiseshell she-cat. Her tail was wrapped neatly around her small white paws, and her amber eyes were glowing with amusement. Confused, Jaypaw took a step towards the other cat, expecting her to explain why she had brought him here.

But instead she meowed, in a mysterious, melancholy voice, "When light and dark clash, they see only despair and betrayal. For three moons both will know what it is to be the other, for balance can be restored only when each sees the truth."

_Was that... a prophecy?_ Jaypaw stared at the she-cat incredulously, unable to make heads or tails of it. Why had she shared this with him?

"I don't understand what you mean, Spottedleaf," he mewed uncertainly.

Spottedleaf blinked down at him. Then she said softly, "It may not be obvious to you – but it will be clear to others."

Jaypaw was even more bewildered by that. What 'others' was Spottedleaf talking about? However, before he could say anymore, the she-cat was walking away from him.

"Hey!" he called out impatiently. "Tell me what you mean!"

But Spottedleaf did not answer. Soon, the tip of her dappled tail had been swallowed by the undergrowth.

*

Meanwhile, across the camp from where Jaypaw was struggling to wake, a shudder ran through Hollypaw's body as she rested in the apprentices' den. She clenched her teeth and struggled for a moment without waking, while on the opposite side of the den, Lionpaw trembled in his sleep.

Outside in the clearing, unnoticed by the slumbering cats, a shooting star blazed over ThunderClan.


	2. Chapter 2: Switched

**Here is the next chapter, and thank you so much to those who reviewed! You really made my day and I hope you enjoy this chapter =). Read on and enjoy the story! x**

**Disclaimer:**** All characters in this story belong to Erin Hunter - I am merely experimenting with them XD.**

_**

* * *

**_

**_Chapter Two ~ Switched_**

Morning sunlight streamed down into the apprentices' den as Lionpaw stretched luxuriously in his nest, his eyes shut tight. Just as he was about to drop back off to sleep, a paw prodded him impatiently in the side and the voice of Cinderpaw sounded in his ear.

"Get up! We're supposed to be on patrol with our mentors, remember?"

Feeling dazed, Lionpaw opened his eyes and looked blearily up at the grey tabby she-cat. He felt strange all of a sudden, as though his body had shrunk during the night. Trying to ignore this weird new sensation, he staggered to his paws. "I don't–" he began, but then stopped abruptly. His voice had changed; it was no longer deep and strong, but slightly high-pitched, like it had been when he was a kit.

Cinderpaw peered at him curiously. "Are you ok?"

Lionpaw shook his head. He definitely didn't feel like himself, and he certainly didn't remember being told he was expected to join a patrol this morning.

Cinderpaw continued to stare at him until a loud voice called from outside the den. It was Cloudtail, Cinderpaw's mentor. She gave a small start and replied hastily, "I'm coming!" Then she looked back at Lionpaw, her blue eyes full of concern. "Shall I tell Brackenfur you're feeling ill? Maybe he'll excuse you from the patrol."

Lionpaw blinked. _Brackenfur? But _Ashfur's_ my mentor! _Highly confused, Lionpaw just nodded.

Cinderpaw gave him a friendly flick with her tail-tip and turned to leave. Lionpaw stared after her, even more bewildered. Cinderpaw had never been affectionate towards him before. What was going on?

As the tabby apprentice reached the entrance, she glanced back over her shoulder at him. "See you later, Hollypaw!" she meowed cheerfully, and departed.

_Wait... did she just call me Hollypaw? _Lionpaw felt a prickle of unease as he watched Cinderpaw's tail disappear from view. Very slowly, half-afraid of what he might see, Lionpaw lowered his head to examine his paws – and let out a yowl of shock. Instead of their usual golden tabby, his paws had become jet-black and were smaller than before. Panic-stricken, Lionpaw looked at his flank, and was horrified to see that it was as dark as his paws. _This can't be happening! It isn't possible! _he thought wildly, dashing from the den.

"Hollypaw?" Leafpool meowed in surprise as Lionpaw sprinted into her den and ran to the pool at the back, anxious to glimpse his reflection. Instead of his normal amber, two wide, scared-looking green eyes stared back at him, set in a face as black as night.

"No..." Lionpaw whimpered, backing away from the water. "Please StarClan, say this isn't happening!"

"Hollypaw, what's wrong?" Leafpool asked nervously.

Before Lionpaw could explain – though he wasn't even sure how he possibly could – a startled cry came from the apprentices' den, and his blood turned to ice. Ignoring Leafpool's questioning gaze, he wheeled around and raced back into the clearing.

As he entered the apprentices' den, a heavy blow hit him on the back of the head and he staggered. Looking up, he saw his own amber eyes glaring down at him, his front paw raised for another attack. He quickly dodged out of harm's way and panted, "Hollypaw, it's me!" It was exceptionally lucky they were the only ones in the den.

Hollypaw lowered her new golden paw, but she still seemed furious. "What have you _done _to me?" she hissed.

Lionpaw glared back defiantly. "You think _I _did this? I'm just as shocked as you are!"

Hollypaw continued to glower at him, her (or rather, Lionpaw's) tail flicking back and forth angrily. "Change us back!" she demanded.

"I can't!" Lionpaw spat, starting to feel angry himself. "Didn't you hear me? I – did – not – do – this! There's only one thing powerful enough to make a change like this..."

"StarClan?" The rage in Hollypaw's now amber eyes was suddenly replaced by uncertainty.

Lionpaw felt his own fury start to ebb away, too. He nodded and said, "But I don't understand why they would do this. What have we done wrong?"

Hollypaw opened her mouth, perhaps to tell Lionpaw _exactly_ what he had done wrong, but Lionpaw growled, "Don't you dare say it! Anyway, I don't think this is because of Heatherpaw."

"What? Of course it is!" Lionpaw could see his body's neck fur beginning to bristle as Hollypaw became irritated again.

To avoid another quarrel, he hurriedly pointed out, "We need to find out how to fix this."

Hollypaw paused, apparently thinking hard. Before she could say anything, however, Jaypaw stuck his head into the den.

"Come with me," he mewed, "I want to tell you something." Then he backed out again.

Exchanging puzzled glances, Hollypaw and Lionpaw followed their brother out of camp and into the forest, Hollypaw accidentally scraping her head painfully against the brambles in the apprentices' den in the process because she forgot to duck enough.

Once away from prying eyes, Jaypaw, Hollypaw and Lionpaw settled down in a small sunlit clearing close to the ThunderClan camp, and there Jaypaw told his siblings what he had learned from Spottedleaf in his dream.

"And she said that the prophecy would be clear to other cats," he concluded, as Hollypaw and Lionpaw looked uneasily at each other.

"Light and dark will be switched for _three moons_?" Hollypaw questioned in Lionpaw's deep voice.

"That's what I said, isn't it?" Jaypaw retorted irritably. He still had not forgiven his brother and sister for excluding him these last few days.

Once again, Lionpaw and Hollypaw glanced at one another, panic in both their expressions. They would be stuck like this for _three whole moons!_

"Didn't Spottedleaf tell you a way to fix it?" Lionpaw asked, trying his hardest to keep the desperation out of Hollypaw's voice.

Jaypaw looked at the cat he thought was his sister and shook his head. "She just said 'balance will be restored only when each sees the truth.' So I guess that light and dark – whoever they are – will have to wait it out."

Lionpaw felt like yowling, '_that's not good enough!'_, but he held his tongue. He didn't want Jaypaw to know that he and Hollypaw were light and dark. Hollypaw clearly felt the same, for she said, "Well, we have to get back to camp now. Lots to do, you know." Then she beckoned Lionpaw to follow her and vanished into the undergrowth.

When Lionpaw caught up with her, she rounded on him and cried helplessly, "What are we going to do? We can't be each other for three whole moons! Someone's bound to notice!"

"I know." Lionpaw's new black tail drooped as despair washed over him. What _were _they going to do? "I suppose we'll just have to act as normal as we can and hope no-one gets suspicious."

"That's not good enough!" Hollypaw spoke Lionpaw's earlier thought. Then she added determinedly, "We _have _to discover a way to fix this! What was it Jaypaw said? 'Balance will be restored only when each sees the truth.' So I guess that means that once we realise what it's like being in each others' paws, we'll be returned to normal. We just have to make sure we find out in less than three moons."

"How?"

"The answer's simple!" Hollypaw snapped exasperatedly. "All we have to do is be each other! Do what the other normally does, speak to who the other normally speaks to... it'll be as easy as catching a mouse!"

_Easy for you to say, _Lionpaw thought irritably. How on earth was he going to get used to being Hollypaw? Out loud, he said, "But that could go wrong in so many ways. What if we say or do something out of character?"

"But we know each other so well that that shouldn't be a problem," Hollypaw explained, as if it was obvious.

"Well, I suppose..." Lionpaw didn't really like the idea much, but what other choice did they have? If they continued to behave like themselves, every cat in the Clan would find out sooner or later. "Ok," he agreed reluctantly, "we'll act as each other." _This better work, _he thought to himself, _or we're in trouble._


End file.
